The World Health Organization urges the creation of novel antibiotics.
Antibiotics are considered a lifesaver in the medical field, yet their effectiveness is diminishing due to the growing resistance among bacteria. The overprescription of antibiotics by doctors is significantly contributing to this problem. In response, WHO is urging for the creation of new antibiotics in order to save millions of lives.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has updated its list of the most hazardous bacteria that current drugs struggle to overcome. At a conference in Geneva, WHO called for immediate investment in the development of new antibiotics to prevent the continuous spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The WHO estimates that AMR contributes to around five million deaths annually worldwide. Bacteria that thrive in hospitals pose a significant threat.
The phenomenon of AMR arises when microbes remain unharmed by an antimicrobial agent. Each time antibiotics are used, resistant bacteria have the opportunity to survive and proliferate. Resistance mainly develops in areas where antibiotics are frequently administered.
Headlining the priority list, as it did in 2017, is the bacterium Acinetobacter baumannii. This pathogen poses a grave threat to immunocompromised individuals in hospitals, causing pneumonia, wound and soft tissue infections, urinary tract infections, sepsis, and meningitis. Other hospital bacteria that also cause similar infections are considered top-priority for research. The newest addition to the top list is Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the primary cause of tuberculosis.
Existing antibiotics hardly tackle resistance
Nine new antibiotics have been introduced since 2017, said WHO AMR expert Hatim Sati. However, these new drugs are frequently modified versions of existing antibiotics, which bacteria promptly develop resistance to. Furthermore, few of these new drugs are effective against multi-resistant bacteria that are resistant to various drugs.
The hurdle is that products against multi-resistant bacteria are typically used as a last resort, resulting in a relatively small market and low motivation for pharmaceutical companies to develop them. Additionally, the cost of new drugs is often prohibitive, making them unavailable in low- and middle-income countries where the resistance problem is most severe.
According to the WHO, the situation with Pseudomonas aeruginosa, another hospital-borne bacterium, has improved slightly. According to the recent updates, resistance to Pseudomonas aeruginosa has slightly decreased. In total, the list encompasses 15 dangerous pathogens that necessitate the development of new drugs.
"The biggest challenge healthcare systems are facing is curbing the onset and transmission of multi-resistant pathogens (MRE)," announced the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) in Berlin last year. The WHO Collaborating Center for Antimicrobial Resistance, Consumption, and Nosocomial Infections operates at the RKI since 2022.
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Source: www.ntv.de
